• Dean Emeritus, Medicine, UBC
• Primary research interest: antithrombotic therapies for heart disease
• Recent clinical trials: TOTAL, COMPLETE, RIVAL

John Cairns is a cardiologist whose research has focused on the modification and non-invasive measurement of myocardial infarct size in humans and dogs, antithrombotic therapies for acute ischemic syndromes and for atrial fibrillation, and post-myocardial infarction arrhythmias. He practiced cardiology for many years in Ontario, focusing on acute coronary care and invasive cardiology. He a member of the CCS group which developed the 2010 Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines and 2012, 2014 and 2016 Updates, chairing the chapter on stroke prevention. He has held a number of academic leadership roles, including Coordinator of the Regional Cardiovascular Program in Hamilton (1979-86), Chair of Medicine, McMaster University (1988-96) and Dean of Medicine, UBC (1996-2003). As Dean, he worked closely with UBC and the provincial government to build the rationale and plans for the two-fold expansion of the Medical School in partnership with the Universities of Victoria and Northern BC. He led the CIHR Clinical Research Initiative in 2004-05, which proposed a variety of programs to strengthen the support of Clinical research in Canada, and he was a member of CIHR’s External Advisory Group on Multi-site Clinical Studies (2012). He is currently co-chair of the Steering Committee of CANNeCTIN, a Canadian and international clinical trials network funded by CFI and CIHR and headquartered at McMaster University. He is the immediate Past-President of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.